SLOVENIA: SLOVENIANS VOTE IN FIRST GENERAL ELECTION SINCE JOINING THE EUROPEAN UNION
Record ID:
328787
SLOVENIA: SLOVENIANS VOTE IN FIRST GENERAL ELECTION SINCE JOINING THE EUROPEAN UNION
- Title: SLOVENIA: SLOVENIANS VOTE IN FIRST GENERAL ELECTION SINCE JOINING THE EUROPEAN UNION
- Date: 3rd October 2004
- Summary: (U4) VODICE, SLOVENIA (OCTOBER 3, 2004) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1. SLV OF PRIME MINISTER AND LEADER OF LIBERAL DEMOCRATS (LDS) ANTON ROP ARRIVING AT POLLING STATION 0.04 2. SLV PRIME MINISTER AND LEADER OF LIBERAL DEMOCRATS (LDS) ANTON ROP SHAKING HANDS WITH ELECTION STAFF AND REGISTERING 0.18 3. SLV ANTON POP VOTING / POSING FOR MEDIA 0.31 (U4) GROSUPLJE, SLOVENIA (OCTOBER 3, 2004) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 4. VARIOUS OF MAIN OPPOSITION LEADER, SLOVENIAN DEMOCRATS (SDS) LEADER, JANEZ JANSA ARRIVING AT POLLING STATION AND REGISTERING 0.53 5. SLV JANSA VOTING 1.01 6. VARIOUS OF PEOPLE CASTING BALLOTS 2.19 (U4) LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA (OCTOBER 3, 2004) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 7. WIDE OF EXTERIOR OF BUILDING OF SLOVENIAN BIGGEST DAILY NEWSPAPER DELO 2.24 8. VARIOUS OF EMPTY DELO NEWSPAPER NEWSROOM (2 SHOTS) 2.34 9. CLOSE OF COMPUTER SCREEN 2.39 10. WIDE OF LJUBLJANA AND BRIDGE ACROSS RIVER 2.45 11. WIDE OF PEOPLE SITTING ON STEPS/ MAN PLAYING ACCORDION 2.51 12. SMV GIRLS SITTING 2.58 13. WIDE OF OILD BUILDINGS 3.04 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 18th October 2004 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: VODICE, GROSUPLJE AND LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA
- Country: Slovenia
- Reuters ID: LVA4DVUXAXVW9PF8TC8G9I2KJLHT
- Story Text: Slovenians vote in the country's first general
election since joining the European Union.
Recent opinion polls show that the ruling
centre-left Liberal Democrats (LDS) are likely to get more
votes than any other party in Slovenia's first general
election on Sunday (October 3) since joining the European
Union, though it might not be enough to form a government.
Polls indicate that the main opposition centre-right
Slovenian Democrats (SDS) and allies in the conservative
New Slovenia (NSI) might gather enough votes to form a new
government with the help of smaller parties.
However, there are few major foreign policy differences
between the two rival blocs in this prosperous Alpine state
of two million people.
Both ends of the political spectrum hope that Slovenia
will adopt the euro in 2007 and are in favour of gradual
privatisation of large state-owned companies in
telecommunications, insurance, banking and energy sectors.
Slovenia is one of ten mostly former communist eastern
European states that joined the European Union in May. The
country declared independence from Yugoslavia in 1991 and
has been a member of NATO since March 2004.
About 1.6 million people are eligible voters who can
chose between 1,401 candidates from 24 political parties
competing for 90 seats in parliament.
Latest opinion polls showed that Prime Minister Anton
Rops LDS might win 16.5 to 24.3 percent of the vote,
followed by the Democrats with 12.2 to 23.2 percent.
LDS, which has been Slovenia's ruling party for most of
the past 12 years, got 36.2 percent of the vote in the last
general election in 2000, followed by the Democrats with
15.8 percent.
Just a few hours before polls opened at 0500 GMT
Slovenian journalists started a general strike, demanding
renewed collective labour agreement for journalists that
would improve labour conditions and bring higher salaries.
The labour union for the journalists said it will end
their first general strike in independent Slovenia only
after media representatives agree to start negotiations on
a renewed agreement. Most local media, including state
radio and television and the national news agency STA,
joined the strike.
The first exit poll projections of the results were expected on
pri
vate television channel POP TV which did not
join the strike.
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